


Disparity

by MyFandomCausesHanaji



Series: Soulmates AUs oneshots [2]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Canon, Riza's POV, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-21 00:24:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17632595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyFandomCausesHanaji/pseuds/MyFandomCausesHanaji
Summary: Riza can hear the moment Edward sees it. Roy is wearing the similar hospital gown with short sleeves, and he most likely has been covering himself up to his chin with the blanket. But she hears him shift at some point, and perhaps the blanket slides down a bit and Edward trails off suddenly in the middle of the word.````````````````````````````````````Soulmates AU prompt:Identical soulmarks on the same place of soulmates bodies.





	Disparity

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, I know I have RoyEd soulmates [fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13245957) already and there are probably million like this too, it is nothing special but I wanted smth nice so I wrote it. ~~instead of finishing two ongoing fics~~
> 
> Hope, you' ll like it :)
> 
>  
> 
> **Riza's POV**

She is holding Roy across the waist and is guiding his right arm with her free hand. He snaps, blind eyes pointing in the general direction of the Father, and the fire that falls down from the fingers of his blooded hand is the fiercest she has ever seen him make.

It is not enough, none of this is enough, and even Edward’s automail shatters.

She sees the mark as soon as the arm appears out of blue alchemy lightning on the empty spot that recently had been occupied by the metal of the automail. She is standing too far, and Edward is almost instantly a blur of movement, so she doesn’t have a chance to see the details of it, and frankly there are still more urgent matters than Edward’s freshly acquired soulmark. However just a brief glance is enough to at least note that she has ever only once seen a soulmark that big of a size before. It covers the whole of Edward’s right upper arm in the intricate design of red lines, and in the midst of battle, just for a fraction of a second, she lets a corner of her mouth  relax in what would’ve been a smile in any other circumstances. 

The rest is a blur, and once the Father is dead and the remains of adrenaline that has been holding her upright dissolves, she barely remembers how she makes it to the hospital bed, Roy is in the bed behind the folding screen ― the hospital is cramped and they are lucky to have this room just for the two of them. 

She doesn’t know how long she sleeps, but it can hardly be a few hours. Roy is unusually quiet, she can hear by his breathing that he is awake, and she wonders if he is scared to close his eyes to sleep only to wake to the same darkness. 

She sits in the bed and opens her mouth to speak, but there are steps halting behind the door to their room and one loud heavy exhale follows as if a person there is trying to gain courage to enter the room. The door opens and she leans back at the pillow.

Edward enters almost hesitantly and stops once he is inside in uncharacteristic timidness. He is wearing a hospital gown that looks out of place with his leather pants. His hair are in a messy ponytail, bandages around his hands and wrists and two thin pink stitches on his cheeks. The gown is short sleeved and covering just the top third of his soulmate mark, and Riza can’t help but hold her gaze on it a bit longer before looking up at Edward’s face. She smiles.

“Hello, Edward.” She can hear Roy’s sharp intake of breath but he doesn’t say anything, so she continues, “It is nice of you to visit. How is Alphonse?”

Edward’s left hand flies to rub at his bony right shoulder and she wonders if he feels self-conscious about the mark or it is simply the forgotten sensation of having another flesh arm that makes him do that.

“He is great,” he says with a smile. “I mean, he is skinny and all, but they said he is healthy otherwise, just needs a lot of food and some exercises, and he will walk out of here on his own two feet in no time.” His grin is no doubt pulling painfully at the fresh stitches on his face, but Riza has to admit she has hardly ever seen him looking so happy. 

“I am thrilled to hear it,” she answers softly. “Please give him my regards and tell him I will visit soon.” 

Edward nods, looking delighted, but his eyes dart to the screen between her and Roy’s bed and she can see his brows furrowing a bit. 

“I―” he starts hesitantly, but she interrupts him.

“I’m glad to know you and your brother both now have your marks back.” She hasn’t seen the Alphonse’s one, but up until now she has never heard of someone not having a soulmark, so it is safe to assume.

Edward looks down at his mark for a moment seeming lost in thought, but then he looks up at her and smiles with his usual brightness.

“His is on the shoulder blade. Normal size, not like this,” he points at his arm. He suddenly laughs and rubs at the back of his neck a bit awkwardly. “May saw it, freaked out and ran away. Now I think she has the matching one but Al doesn’t believe me.”

“That is great, Edward, I’m happy for your brother. I’m sure May will return in no time.”

“Yeah, I’m not really worried,” he says with a warm smile. He looks much more at ease than when he just entered the room and she almost hates to ruin this for him, but she knows there are some things that would never get off the ground unless someone pushes for it. And when it has something to do with Roy she has to push for it almost constantly. And  _ this _ has definitely a lot to do with Roy. 

“What about you?” she asks and Edward lifts a brow.

“Me?”

She points at his soulmark and smiles reassuringly. “They say the bigger the mark the more stronger the bond between soulmates and the more likely they would come along better.” Being soulmates doesn’t always mean being in full sync with each other. She knew couples whose soulmarks were rather small, and she wouldn’t call such relationships anything but groggy. “Having such a big soulmark is a rare thing, Edward. But you don’t seem happy about it.”

Roy shifts in his bed and Edward looks at the screen.

“Is he?..”

“He is not asleep.”

“Now, you just had to do this,” Roy sighs sarcastically but she can hear the unease in his voice. “Don’t you know that listening to other people’s conversations while they think I can’t hear them is one of my favorite pastimes?”

“I didn’t for a second think you were asleep.”

“Yes, but Fullmetal definitely did.”

“I’m sure Edward knows better than to think you wouldn’t use any opportunity to eavesdrop.” 

Edward rolls his eyes silently and she smiles at the sight. He walks past her bed and steps behind the screen stopping in the foot of Roy’s bed. 

“Hey, Colonel,” Edward greets. “You look like shit.”

“Sadly, as you can see, I am in no position to confront this accusation right now,” Roy says with a chuckle.

“Yeah, I can  _ see _ .” A smile is audible in Edward’s voice and Riza thinks she can hear Roy mutter  _ Brat _ under his breath.

“So, I heard you got your arm back.”

“Yep.”

“And with it your soulmark, I take it?”

“Mm.”

“You don’t sound too happy about it.”

Edward shifts from foot to foot and Riza hears him rubbing his arm again.

“Yeah, well, you know, what if I fall in love with someone and our marks don’t match?”

“It doesn’t happen that often, Edward.”

“Yeah, but  _ what if _ ,” he insists. “Al thinks I’m overthinking it.”

Riza expects Roy to side with Alphonse, but he takes a moment to answer, and says instead,

“I sincerely hope it will not happen to you, Edward.”

“Yeah, me too. Thanks, I guess.”

“You are welcome. Now, I heard what you told Riza about your brother but I’m sure you won’t mind telling me more. If anything, I didn’t even see him.”

The question is nothing but a diversion, to shift the conversation from the topic Riza knows Roy himself prefers to avoid, but Edward jumps into the opportunity to talk about his beloved brother and for a next few minutes room is filled with his happy loud voice.

Riza can hear the moment Edward sees it. Roy is wearing the similar hospital gown with short sleeves, and he most likely has been covering himself up to his chin with the blanket. But she hears him shift at some point, and perhaps the blanket slides down a bit and Edward trails off suddenly in the middle of the word. 

She knows she shouldn’t be here. She wants to give them some privacy, but frankly, she still feels weak from her injuries, plus she is not sure that if she moves now reminding them of her presence, it won’t create even more awkwardness.

She closes her eyes and stills her breath, hoping that the screen between the beds might be enough of the privacy for now.

“Edward?” Roy asks, uncertainty audible in his voice and she could only guess what kind of thoughts are going through his mind now. 

There is a sound of the bed springs giving in under extra weight, and the rustle of fabrik follows.

“What are you doing, Fullmetal?!”

“Just taking a look, can you stop fidgeting?”

There is a sound of brief struggle and Riza smiles quietly. Roy is breathing heavily with frustration, and Edward is humming under his breath, and she imagines him probably kneeling down on the bed, perhaps trying to hold both of Roy’s arms from shoving him away, while he is no doubtedly studying the design of Roy’s soulmark on his right arm. 

“Even aside from the fact that you  _ taking a look _ seems exceptionally unfair right now when I can’t even see, one’s soulmark is a more private matter than something you can simply shove your nose in to  _ take a look, _ Fullmetal.” 

Roy is trying to sound his usual self, but there is some shaking in the depth of his voice.

“You can call me Edward, you know,” Edward says absentmindedly. “Or just Ed, actually. Not really Fullmetal anymore.”

“If I may ask,  _ Edward _ , what is it that you are trying to see?”

"I'm comparing.”

“Comparing what?”

“The soulmarks, what else? They are fucking huge, gotta make sure,” Edward says and falls silent again. 

“Whose soulmark you are comparing mine with exactly?” Roy asks, and Riza rolls her eyes, sure that Edward now does the same.

There is a movement and she wonders if Edward sits up to give Roy  _ the look _ . Shame, he can’t actually see it.

“The Father’s,” Edward says flatly. “You know, noticed during the fight, you just missed it all cause you are blind.”

“What?..” Roy asks breathlessly and Riza holds down a chuckle.

“Wow, did you actually believe that?” There is a genuine amusement in Edward's voice when he says it. “My fucking luck, to be stuck not with just blind but also dumb soulmate.” 

Riza can hear Roy’s breath catch and she almost regrets the presence of the screen, because the expression on Roy’s face must be priceless right now.  She is glad that Edward is being direct about this ― someone should be blunt like this to deal with Roy’s stubbornness.

There are a few more moments of complete silence and then Roy asks in a small voice,

“Riza?..”

She opens her eyes and turns to look at where she assumes Roy’s face should be behind the screen, hoping he will be able to feel the heaviness of her gaze even in this circumstances.

“He is not messing with you, Roy,” she says and there is a small short sound resembling a whine, and she knows Roy will deny to his dying breath that it was him who just made it.

There is more rustling and shifting, and Roy inhales sharply.

“What are you doing, Edward?”

“Holding your hand, what else.”

There is a moment of silence and then a hesitant, “You don’t have to,” follows.

Edward sighs in frustration and Riza can’t find it in herself to feel sorry for him.

“I don’t have to, but I want to. Do you want me to leave?”

Roy is not answering right away but Riza can’t hear him pulling away either. 

“No,” he finally says quietly in a tired voice. “Please, don’t.”

“Good,” Edward says and the bed springs squeak again. “Because now you’re stuck with me.”

After that nothing follows. Riza closes her eyes again, and turns on her side to make herself more comfortable. She can hear the two sets of breathing behind the screen slowly even out and she is not surprised when they fall in sync with one another.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Please, drop me a line in the comments to let me know what you think, it will make my day! ^_^
> 
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> 
> ``````````````  
> Fics in this series:
> 
> 1\. **RoyEd** \- _Fullmetal Alchemist_ \- You can see shiny fingerprints on the things your soulmate touched with bare fingers (only for a few moments after which they fade).
> 
> 2\. **RoyEd** \- _Fullmetal Alchemist_ \- Identical soulmarks on the same place of soulmates bodies. 
> 
> 3\. **WangXian** \- _Mo Dao Zu Shi_ \- Legend says that if you fold 1000 paper figures you will learn the name of your soulmate. 
> 
> 4\. **SasuNaru** \- _Naruto_ \- The last words you will hear from your soulmate before they die are written on your arm. 
> 
> 5\. **Otayuri** \- _Yuri on ice_ \- The first words you’ll hear your soulmate say are written on your body. 
> 
> 6\. **SouRin** \- _Free!_ \- Everyone is born with a unique number only they and their soulmates have
> 
> 7\. **Shakarian** \- _Mass Effect trilogy_ \- Counter that depicts how many times you pass your soulmate.
> 
> 8\. **OrgaMika** \- _Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans_ \- If you’ve met your soulmate, you’ll feel when they die and after your death you‘ll have an opportunity to relive your lives again from the moment you met.


End file.
